The national survey sheds light on the typical morning routines of over 1,000 Australians, from wake-up times and breakfast habits all the way to digital usage in the morning. Despite over a third of Australians admitting breakfast is essential to their productivity and a further quarter agreeing it prevents them from eating heavier during the day, almost half of Aussies are choosing to skip breakfast during the week, while a further quarter confess to skipping breakfast more than twice each week.
Meanwhile, of those who do choose to eat breakfast, only a third choose a full breakfast each morning, while over a quarter prefer something light like fruit instead, suggesting a wholesome, fulfilling breakfast is not a priority for many Australians.
Underpinned by Holiday Inn Express' 'we know what matters' promise, the survey was designed to understand how morning behaviours contribute to overall health and wellbeing, and to thereby help Australians better utilise their mornings when staying at one of the brand's four hotels across the country. The newest opening, Holiday Inn Express Newcastle, opened just days ago on 28-Mar-2019.
"By undertaking this research, we hoped to uncover the ways we can help make the mornings of our guests more seamless, and thereby offer more of what matters most," says Michelle Peterson, global vice president, Holiday Inn Express, at IHG. While many hotels have removed the breakfast offering from its core product, Holiday Inn Express hotels continue to include a free breakfast offering.
"We're committed to providing our guests with the best experience and support during their stays with us, whether it be for work, pleasure, or both," adds Ms Peterson.
The survey findings also reveal that more than half of Australians have admitted to waking up tired each morning, with only one in 10 feeling happy as they wake. This comes at a time when over a third of the population are starting each day feeling stressed from thinking about the work day ahead.
Furthermore, half of the population are checking their emails before they even get to work, with over a quarter revealing they first look while still in bed. Another two thirds of Australians admit to beginning their day with social media with over a quarter checking their feeds before they even get up.
Optimistically, the research does reveal Australians do want to start their days healthier with half the population choosing to exercise more if they could change one thing about their morning routine, while almost a quarter would eat a healthy breakfast and a further 15% would meditate.